PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT BARRIERS IN MARINE PARK ISLAND GOVERNANCE: INSIGHTS FROM EAST COAST PENINSULAR MALAYSIA

Abstract

Local authorities in many countries serve local communities by facilitating and maintaining public amenities. Apart from that, local authorities also manage the planning and development of local tourism. A tremendous number of responsibilities and work are burdening local authorities to manage the planning and development of tourism islands. This research aim is to identify management barriers faced by local authorities managing the Peninsular Malaysia Marine Park Islands. The results were obtained from in-depth interviews with the four local authority officers and document analysis. The local authorities are Majlis Bandaraya Kuala Terengganu (MBKT) for Redang Island, Majlis Daerah Marang (MDM) for Kapas Island, Majlis Daerah Besut (MDB) for Perhentian Island and Tioman Development Authority (TDA) for Tioman Island. Two officers from each local authority were interviewed. The officers are from the Department of Town Planning and the Department of Municipal Services and Licensing. Altogether, nine officers were interviewed. Several barriers have emerged from the analysis. The results indicated that six barriers are common, and three barriers are specific to the departments. The common barriers are a lack of funding, a lack of staff, time constraints, substantial distance from the mainland and a lack of commitment from top management and a lack of intergovernmental coordination/collaboration. This research can be extended to marine parks located in Sabah and Sarawak, and a comparative study can be accomplished for further improvements in the planning and management of the MPIs.